Meet Maymont’s New Coyote Pups at The Robins Nature Center and the Virginia Wildlife Trail

 

Richmond, Virginia – Maymont’s newest animal ambassadors will make their debut this weekend when the Virginia Wildlife Trail reopens. Everyone is invited to come meet the two young coyotes on May 2 as part of the festivities planned around the Grrrrand Reopening of the Virginia Wildlife Trail. The coyotes are joining dozens of species of rescued and non-releasable wildlife that have found a forever home at Maymont, where they help educate the public about the wildlife that share our environment.

The two coyotes followed different routes to Maymont but share similar origin stories. Each was found as a very young pup, orphaned or abandoned, too young to fend for themselves. Despite local rescue organizations’ attempts to rehabilitate them for a return to the wild, both pups became too attached to humans to be deemed releasable.

“We are delighted to provide a forever home to these adorable coyote pups as they grow into their roles as animal ambassadors at Maymont,” said Parke Richeson, President & CEO of Maymont Foundation. “These two are very active and curious and allow us to teach visitors and students about special adaptations they’ve evolved to survive in close proximity with humans across North America.”

Coyotes began arriving in Virginia from the West in the 1970s and are now listed as “naturalized natives.” As wolves and mountain lions disappeared from the environment, coyotes have few competitors, and have increased their range significantly into the East, including Virginia where they can be found in most of the state’s counties and cities. Even though coyotes may be viewed with some suspicion as newcomers, they provide benefits to their communities by controlling populations of nuisance rodents. They generally avoid contact with humans and are mostly active at night, but can adapt to daytime hours. They are highly intelligent and adaptable.

Maymont’s new coyotes are a male and a female, from each of the primary species found in North America: Eastern and Western coyotes. One-year-old Bernie is a male Eastern coyote who was found orphaned near Pittsburgh last spring as a three-week-old pup. Humane Animal Rescue of Pittsburgh caregivers exhausted all options to keep him wild by disguising themselves using ghillie suits for camouflage, playing natural calls and reaching out to other facilities for a pseudo-sibling to mimic proper family development dynamics to prepare him for return to the wild. Unfortunately, in the time it took to bring in two pseudo-siblings, he started showing non-reversible signs of reliance on humans and was deemed unable to survive on his own.

The other pup is a four-month-old female Western coyote found orphaned in San Diego County on Valentine’s Day. After trying to locate her family, staff from San Diego Humane Society took her in to rehabilitate for release to the wild, with caregivers using coyote disguises and natural scents to maintain her wild instincts as she progressed from formula to solid food. But it soon became clear she would not survive on her own in the wild. She will earn a new name as part of Maymont’s Vintage on the Green fundraising event, May 16.

“The coyotes add an exciting new dimension to the story Maymont tells about how different species have adapted to the changing environment,” said Krista Weatherford, Director of Programming and Curator of Natural Resources. “Seeing these normally elusive creatures up close in their habitats along the Virginia Wildlife Trail and in The Robins Nature Center can spark a lifelong interest in the natural world.”

At first, the female coyote pup will spend most of her days in a specially designed nursery room in The Robins Nature Center, alternating with periods in an outdoor habitat as she adapts to her new home. For a limited time, visitors can watch her play, eat and nap as part of the immersive “Run of the River” experience at The Robins Nature Center, which also features active play areas, interactive learning stations, and nearly 30,000 gallons of aquaria filled with river otters, fish, turtles, snakes and amphibians of the James River ecosystem. The Robins Nature Center is open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through May, and will be open Tuesdays through Sundays all summer long, from 10 am to 5 pm.

The newly enhanced Virginia Wildlife Trail is included in Maymont’s free general admission, open from 10 am to 7 pm during daylight savings, and from 10 am to 5 pm when days are shorter. Additional guided experiences and up-close programs with some of Maymont’s wildlife are available for advance reservation at Maymont.org/tours. All program fees help support the operations of the nonprofit Maymont Foundation, which cares for the historic collections, gardens and animals, and provides educational programs to tens of thousands of school-age children each year.

About Maymont

Maymont, located in the heart of Richmond, Virginia, celebrates its 100^th anniversary this year as a 100-acre public space where all are welcome to connect with history, nature, wildlife and each other. Built as a Gilded Age estate overlooking the James River, Maymont opened to the public in 1926 and today offers free admission to explore its miles of walking paths through rolling hills, beautiful landscaped gardens, with farm animals and the Virginia Wildlife Trail with habitats for rescued native animals. In addition, Maymont offers staff-guided and self-guided tours of the 1893 Maymont Mansion, historic estate buildings and gardens, plus The Robins Nature Center, with 30,000 gallons of aquaria showcasing the remarkable James River ecosystem. Since 1975, the nonprofit Maymont Foundation has been entrusted to care for this unique place, galvanizing community support around its mission to delight, educate and inspire. Maymont annually welcomes more than a million guests and is consistently ranked among the top regional attractions by travelers and locals alike.

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Note to editors: Images are available upon request to press@maymont.org.